A crew member who fell from a bulker off Australia has been found alive 24 hours later.
The unnamed seafarer in his 20s was spotted by a fisherman off Blacksmith Beach, New South Wales, on Friday night, after going missing from the 95,500-dwt Double Delight (built 2015) at anchorage in Newcastle.
The beach is 6km (3.7 miles) away from the ship.
International Transport Workers Federation inspector Dan Crumlin said the fisherman, who was also a doctor, found the man while returning from a day out on his boat, according to broadcaster ABC.
The crew member was taken to hospital for treatment.
New South Wales Ambulance said the man was in a serious but stable condition.
He has been treated for suspected hypothermia and remained conscious during an examination.
Garry Dodd, regional director of the Mission to Seafarers and senior chaplain to the Port of Newcastle, told ABC: “It truly is a miracle… It’s about a 12-metre jump from the deck — so even that, smashing into the water, is itself quite dangerous.
“It’s incredible a fisherman was able to find him. There’s a lot of water out there and a lot of space — it might not look very far … but if you have to try to swim it with the currents, it’s a challenge,” he added.
The Double Delight docked in the port after the man went missing, and has now left for Kaohsiung in Taiwan.
The bulker is operated by Japan’s Sugahara Kisen and arrived at anchorage in Newcastle on Wednesday after leaving Misumi, Japa, on 19 October.
